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During Britain& #39;s #coronavirus lockdown, one group of people was forced to continue coming into work with little protection - and met with a total lack of support as sickness began to spread among them.
Their story matters, because they worked for the British government. [Thread]
Their story matters, because they worked for the British government. [Thread]
This is the tale of how workers employed by outsourcing giant OCS to clean one of the UK& #39;s largest government ministries ( @MoJGovUK) were treated at the height of the #Covid19 pandemic, with deadly consequences - and how the cleaners themselves fought back.
Cleaners at @MoJGovUK are paid about £9 an hour - considerably below the London living wage - and most have to work several different jobs, up to 80+hrs a week, to survive. Most face a weekly battle to afford rent, food and bills.
When #coronavirus struck, most staff @MoJGovUK switched to working from home - but the cleaners were ordered to keep coming in, sweeping carpets that had not been walked upon and scrubbing toilets that had not been used.
They asked managers for PPE and more information on how to keep safe. Most importantly, they requested occupational sick pay - to which normally they are not entitled - so that anyone falling ill with #Covid19 symptoms could afford to stay home and self-isolate. They were ignored
Circulating in small teams through deserted corridors, one by one the cleaners began to fall sick with coughs, aches and fevers.
Those compelled to work by hardship felt terrified. Those that followed official guidelines and went home were stripped of their pay, or dismissed.
Those compelled to work by hardship felt terrified. Those that followed official guidelines and went home were stripped of their pay, or dismissed.
When the cleaners managed to track down their supervisors and express their concerns, they were met with misinformation and indifference.
"We said we needed protective materials, but were told, & #39;Why? There’s no cases, there’s no point in giving you guys anything& #39;" remembers one.
"We said we needed protective materials, but were told, & #39;Why? There’s no cases, there’s no point in giving you guys anything& #39;" remembers one.
"There is no evidence to suggest there is or ever has been a coronavirus outbreak at Petty France" @MoJGovUK has insisted, wrongly.
We now know that at least seven outsourced workers at the Ministry at Justice fell ill with symptoms consistent with coronavirus. Two of them died.
We now know that at least seven outsourced workers at the Ministry at Justice fell ill with symptoms consistent with coronavirus. Two of them died.
Our investigation – which has involved hours of testimony from workers as well as internal documents, leaked emails and text messages – reveals that not only were officials aware of a suspected coronavirus outbreak on site, but that they withheld this info from the cleaners.
"What we wanted was decent information, and to be treated as human beings," Fatima Djalo, one of the cleaners, told me.
“Cleaners are people,” said Luis Eduardo Veintimilla, her colleague. “No one took any responsibility, and now they are culpable for what happened.”
“Cleaners are people,” said Luis Eduardo Veintimilla, her colleague. “No one took any responsibility, and now they are culpable for what happened.”
What happened was that workers attending to the very people we relied upon to protect us during the pandemic were left to struggle, fall ill, and - in the case of Emanuel Gomes - die in horrible circumstances. Emanuel& #39;s story is one of the hardest I& #39;ve ever reported.
At the heart of this scandal is the outsourcing model under which the cleaners are employed. UK taxpayers hand over £17.5m per year to OCS - a company privately-owned by the Goodliffe family, who appear on the Sunday Times Rich List - yet cannot see the firm& #39;s @MoJGovUK contract.
Outsourcing allows both the government and private outsourcing companies to shift the blame when things go wrong and avoid accountability.
@MoJGovUK told us that the cleaners& #39; pay and benefits were not their responsibility. OCS refused to comment.
@MoJGovUK told us that the cleaners& #39; pay and benefits were not their responsibility. OCS refused to comment.
The tale of what happened inside the @MoJGovUK headquarters during the pandemic says much about the sort of country that #coronavirus landed in - and even more about the political struggles that must be fought over the country that emerges on the other side.
Crucially, this is not a tale of cartoon villains and passive victims. The only reason we know about what happened is that the cleaners themselves - despite linguistic barriers, hostile managers and material insecurity - have managed to organise, fight back, and share their story
Emanuel& #39;s family too have waged a ceaseless and inspiring struggle for justice, even though they are scattered across several countries and continents and were forced to navigate a maze of pandemic bureaucracy. Their struggle continues.
If you want to support the @MoJGovUK cleaners and other low-paid, migrant and precarious workers like them, follow @UVWunion and - if you can manage it - make a donation to their strike fund. https://www.uvwunion.org.uk/solidarity ">https://www.uvwunion.org.uk/solidarit...
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